Dozens of fighting dogs -- many of them scarred, starved and scared --
were removed from a barn in South Holland on Friday in what officials
described as a major bust of a high-end breeding and training operation.

"Today we made the largest seizure of dogs in the history of the state
of Illinois," Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart said at a news conference
outside the home of the dogs' owner, a 29-year-old man now facing
felony charges related to dog fighting and animal cruelty.

Thirty-seven dogs -- from puppies to adults in top fighting condition
to broken, wounded older animals -- were removed from cages stacked
three high in a dark room in the barn behind the suspect's home.

Most appeared to be pit bulls, but one -- a urine-soaked dog, larger
than the pit bulls, and whose hair was falling out -- was thought to be a
"bait dog," used to train the pit bulls to fight, investigators said.

Treadmills to increase the animals' stamina and amphetamines to make
them fight harder and stronger also were recovered, Dart said.

The suspect was taken to the sheriff's police headquarters in Maywood.
Charges won't be filed before Saturday, spokeswoman Penny Mateck said.
It would not be the first time the man has faced charges in connection
with dog fighting, Dart said.

"This is an individual who was just recently convicted of attending a
dog fight in Livingston County, by Pontiac, Illinois," he said. "We were
involved in that arrest as well. That was a large outdoor dog-fighting
event that went on about a year and a half ago."

Investigators have not found any evidence dog fights took place at the
South Holland barn. Authorities said the suspect bred and trained the
dogs to sell or rent to individuals who entered them in fights
elsewhere. The dogs typically sold for about $500 each, an investigator said.

The property in the 15900 block of Cottage Grove Avenue, surrounded by
homes, seemed an unlikely location to house, breed and train fighting
dogs.

With the doors to the barn open, the pungent odor of dog urine and
feces wafted through the neighborhood, and the sound of the dogs could be
heard a block away.

"It's one of the things that I found astounding when I came here, both
from the aroma and the noise, that more people did not know about it,"
Dart said. "But there is a level of insulation inside the barn that
keeps you from hearing things inside and out, and there also was a
mechanism in the ventilation, where it kicked in radios as well to try to
drown out the sound [of the dogs]."

Operation hidden

It appeared to work. Neighbors gathered throughout the morning and
afternoon, incredulous when they learned of the dogs.

"This is going to come as a shock to everybody," said Charles Dixon,
53, of the 15900 block of South Drexel Avenue, about a block from where
the dogs were discovered. "We knew he had dogs. You could open your
window last summer and the stench would knock you out. We went to him and
asked him to clean it up, and he did."

Dixon said he never suspected his neighbor was raising dogs to fight.

"He seemed like a real nice guy," he said. "But then, they say John
Wayne Gacy was a hell of a nice neighbor, too."

Call began scrutiny

Dart said a concerned citizen contacted South Holland police and his
office in May. He declined to identify the person, but two workers for
animal shelters who were watching the bust said they tipped off police.
Officials close to the investigation confirmed their role.

One of the workers, who did not wish to be identified for fear of
reprisal, said she and her colleague went to the suspect's home May 14 and
told him he was breaking the law. The police were called, and the
workers said the officers told them they had to leave the suspect's property.

The two workers told reporters they believed police did not take their
suspicions seriously. But an investigator at the scene said that as a
result of the May 14 incident, officers with the sheriff's police
special operations unit and the South Holland department began trying to
develop evidence for a search warrant.

A neighbor who lives across the street said he began seeing police in
unmarked cars watching the home the last several weeks, and one
investigator interviewed him about a week ago.

"I told him that the place was like a gas station -- people coming and
going constantly at night," said the man, who did not wish to be
identified. "I thought maybe he was dealing drugs."

A horrific process

Dart and investigators said the process by which a happy puppy is
transformed into a brutal fighter is simple: First, break the animal's will
by keeping it in the dark, in a cramped cage without adequate food or
water, and, on occasion, batter it with loud music. Then, once the
animal is reduced to a shell, rebuild it physically and mentally through
better feeding, strength training and beatings and torture to make it
angry. Then, take it out and bet money on what essentially are death
matches.

The sheriff said it was too soon to know whether any of the dogs would
be put to death.

Dart said the investigation is ongoing.

He lamented the cachet dog fighting has garnered, both in bragging
points for gang members and as a lucrative moneymaker.

"That's one of the things that's really so troubling," Dart said. "They
become status symbols within the gangs, and it's also used as a way of
making money. It's not anything like what somebody might say is a
harmless offense. This is incredibly serious -- the amount of cruelty
toward the animals is unbelievable."

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I've Been Boo'd

I've been Frosted

Today is the oldest you've ever been, and the youngest you'll ever be again.

I'm so glad they finally arrested this punk that thinks nothing of contributing to an already obnoxious so called "sport". I saw this on the news last night and was overjoyed. Unfortunately, he'll probably only get off with a slap on the wrist.

Rest In Peace Casey (Bubba Dude) Your paw print will remain on my heart forever. 12/02
Mollie Rose, you were there for me through good times and in bad, from the beginning.Your passing will leave a hole in my heart.We will be together "One Fine Day". 1994-2009
MooShoo,you left me too soon.I wasn't ready.Know that you were my soulmate and have left me broken hearted.I loved you like no other. 1999 - 2010See you again "ONE FINE DAY"
Maya Linn, my heart is broken. The day your beautiful blue eyes went blind was the worst day of my life.I only wish I could've done something.I'll miss your "premium" purr and our little "conversations". 1997-2013 See you again "ONE FINE DAY"

I just went to the Atlanta Falcon website and sent them an email for Mr. Vick that I can imagine will curl someone's hair. I doubt that he will ever read it but I hope someone get's something out of it.

I was amazed at how clever I could be after hearing the latest on CNN. I didn't think I had it in me. In the email, in conclusion, I invited him to please come to Florida and spend a week with me and I would show him a really good time.

Remember that the Altlanta Falcons are just his employer, we have to wait until they make a judgement as to what they are going to do with him.

I see he has his own website with message boards. However, I couldn't find a "contact" link on there to go directly to him or his people. I didn't know what else to do to get my frustrations out. I am so incredibly sickened by this story, I can't get over it. If he is in fact found guilty of this crime, I hope he gets as much punishment that the law allows.

That is for a jury to decide, based on the evidence that will be presented to them at the time of the trial.

Do I think Vick is a punk?

Yes, but I thought he was a punk long before these charges were being investigated.

Do you think that there is a chance in hell that he will get off on any of
each separate count in the Indictment? The evidence, shown only publicly,
would prove overwhelming guilt on all charges. Who knows how many witnesses can be produced for Trial against him. In fact it shows his
involvement in all phases of the dog fighting business. He's a freak &
deserves all the time he gets.

I've Been Boo'd

I've been Frosted

Today is the oldest you've ever been, and the youngest you'll ever be again.

Again, there hasn't been a trial yet, and we only know what's in the grand jury indictment. Who knows what it will look like when the lawyers get done with it?

I have sincere doubts about his innocence, but with some of the emails I've received I felt that some people could do with a reminder that there IS a constitutional right to trial by jury, as opposed to lynching via public opinion.

The one eyed man in the kingdom of the blind wasn't king, he was stoned for seeing light.